


#LoveWins

by Kryptaria, rayvanfox



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Equality, Marriage Proposal, Romance, True Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-27
Updated: 2015-06-27
Packaged: 2018-04-06 10:48:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4218843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kryptaria/pseuds/Kryptaria, https://archiveofourown.org/users/rayvanfox/pseuds/rayvanfox
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Supreme Court's decision of Marriage Equality was near and dear to Steve's heart. He felt it was his duty to reunite the Avengers, past and present, to offer their support and protection for a nation that would, as of the morning of Friday, June 26, need help, stability, and guidance. Anticipating trouble, he called together the whole team to have a presence in the thirteen hold-out states.</p><p>He never expected his best friend, a  member of his very first team -- the Howling Commandos -- to show up on this of all days.</p>
            </blockquote>





	#LoveWins

**Author's Note:**

> _Temporarily unbetaed!_
> 
> The supreme court handed down a landmark decision today, saying marriage is the constitutional right of all Americans, regardless of sexual preference. We wanted to celebrate and show our support for all those who got married today and will now be able to in the future -- and we're sure The Avengers would as well.

**Monday, June 1, 2015**

The door had barely closed on the Avengers facility’s command room before Steve had activated the virtual meeting hologram chairs. He stared at a wall-sized map of the US until he knew the connections had been made to his team — old and new. Clint was at his farm, along with Sam and Wanda. Natasha was usually here, with Steve, but she was in New York today. Tony wasn’t part of the team officially, but he couldn’t resist keeping his nose in their business. Thor was hooked up to the system, though his Asgardian technology meant he could wander around and still be seen by all. Steve had no idea where Bruce was, but he was available — though only on audio.

Once everyone was hooked up, Steve said, “We need a plan.”

“A plan? A plan for what? I’ve got lots of plans. Pull up a list of plans, JAR—” Tony’s mouth snapped shut as Vision floated into the room. None of them had quite gotten used to JARVIS’ voice coming out of a person, but Tony was the only one who still slipped and forgot that his AI wasn’t _his_ anymore, but had a form and a will of his own.

“Much as I hate to admit Stark asked a legitimate question,” Natasha drawled, “a plan for what, Steve?”

“The Supreme Court is looking at marriage equality. Some time soon — maybe this week, maybe this summer — they’re gonna have a ruling on it. If they make the wrong decision, the country’s going to need our help keeping the peace.”

Sam shifted in his chair. “Which side are you calling ‘wrong’?”

Steve gave him that disappointed-but-hopeful-you-can-learn-your-lesson look he’d perfected.

“Okay, okay. Just making sure.” Sam put up his hands, grinning a little too slyly. “You _are_ kinda old fashioned, you know.”

“Uh huh.” It took Steve a moment — full of muffled snickers from the rest of the Avengers — to realize Sam was pulling his leg. He rolled his eyes, let his grin slip a little bit, and said, “And if they make the _right_ decision, then people applying for marriage licenses in tough places are going to need our help.”

“We’re only one team,” Clint said, twirling a crayon between his fingers and looking around at the other holographic seats. “Who else are we getting to help? We can’t cover the whole country.”

“I can summon my fellow warriors to assist us,” Thor offered.

“No offense, Thor, but as helpful as your friends might be, they aren’t familiar with Earth customs. And we’ll be stretched too thin for anyone to keep an eye on them,” Steve replied.

“Thirteen states,” Sam said. “The thirteen states that have a ban.”

Steve nodded. “Those are the potential hot spots. We’ll each have to take one.”

“Uh, I know math’s not your strong suit,” Tony drawled, “but there are nine of us here at the moment.”

“We have friends. Commander Hill works for you, Stark,” Steve continued. “We can bring her in. And Colonel Rhodes.”

Tony got a fierce grin. “Rhodey? Yeah, he’d do this, and screw what the Air Force thinks.”

“Two more,” Bruce said softly.

“Ms. Potts,” Steve said.

Tony sat up. “Pepper? But —”

“She’s as much an Avenger as the rest of us.” Steve stared at Tony. “Maybe more, considering she handles her own stuff _and_ cleans up after you.”

Tony gave a snarky grin. “Okay. Who’s lucky number thirteen?”

“Nick.”

The table erupted in chatter. Steve tapped a couple more buttons on his console.

“You think he’ll break his cover for this?” Sam asked.

Steve nodded. “He’ll come out for this, by God.”

“God has nothing to do with it,” Fury said as he wavered into view. “This is about human rights, justice, and the freedom to love whoever your heart desires. I’m in.”

 

**Monday, June 8, 2015**

Steve thumbed through the very few contacts he had in his phone and hit the send button. Holding the phone up to his ear, he barely waited for the other end to pick up before he said, “Tony.”

After a moment’s pause, Tony said, ‘Hey, Cap. What’s shaking?”

“Um...” Steve stopped bouncing his knee and answered, “When will they come to a decision?”

“They? They who? The illiterate masses?”

Rolling his eyes, Steve said flatly, “The Supreme Court.”

Tony huffed into the phone. “Do I _look_ like a fat old white guy in a black dress? Or, well, a short lady who probably bites? Or —”

“Come on, Tony. You’ve got more connections than a...” _A thing that’s got connections._ “A spider in its web.”

“Great. Fat, eight legs, and hairy. I’ll take the dress,” Tony said wryly. “And no, I’ve got nothin’. Sorry, Cap. My political connections end with keeping HYDRA’s claws out of my tech. Law is someone else’s department. _Anyone_ else’s.”

“Your...” Steve kept himself from mentioning Howard and _his_ connections. “Fine. You still got a legal depart— Never mind, I’ll call Pepper.”

“Don’t bug Pepper. Lawyers, I’ve got. Enough lawyers to feed a whole zombie apocalypse for a year, assuming the zombies would actually eat them. Our luck, they’ll survive. Lawyers and cockroaches. Or is that nukes?”

“Yeah, Tony. Let’s not talk about nukes, all right?” Steve shut his eyes and tried to stay on task. “Have someone from legal call me. Anyone who might know something about Constitutional law.”

 

**Wednesday, June 10, 2015**

“Okay. That’s all of your assignments,” Steve said, looking at his team — both in person and via hologram. Sam, Nat, and Wanda were back at the bunker, and Clint would be there by the end of the week. Tony had Vision, Maria, Rhodey, and Pepper in his headquarters at the Tower. Thor was _somewhere_ , though his Asgardian hologram made it look like he was in the room. Everyone else was remote, though Steve had no idea where Fury was or how he’d gotten a full hologram hookup instead of the voice-only interface Bruce and the others were using. “We _still_ don’t know _when_ this is going to happen, so we’ve got to be ready to move at a moment’s notice. Stay close to your transport. If you’ve got to leave, notify your designated pilot or have your flight gear with you. Any questions?”

“Yeah, not about this, but...” Even via hologram, Tony’s grin hadn’t lost any of its cockiness. “Let’s talk for a few, after this. Private business.”

Right. Steve braced himself for arguments but dismissed the rest of the team. “I’ll catch up with you guys in a bit,” he told Sam, Nat, and Wanda.

“If you’re late for dinner, you’ll miss the appetizers,” Wanda warned. “And Sam cooked.”

“Yeah, because I’m the only _good_ cook here,” Sam said, herding her out.

Nat stopped in the doorway and turned back, giving Steve a curious look. After all this time working together, he knew what she was silently offering.

“Thanks, Nat. I’ll handle him,” he said, deliberately without muting the room’s audio pickup.

“Hey. No handling,” Tony complained. “That’s Pepper’s job.”

“I’ll send her a condolence card,” Natasha said, giving Steve a nod before she walked out.

“What’s up, Stark?” Steve turned to look at Tony, his poker face firmly in place.

Tony lifted a computer tablet into the hologram’s pickup, though the tablet’s screen was a wash of blue static. It was a communications safety measure that had proved more trouble than it was worth. “First off, are you sure you don’t want me in Louisiana?”

Steve narrowed his eyes fractionally, but didn’t give away the fact that he’d specifically given Louisiana to someone other than Tony because the idea of him being anywhere near New Orleans’ French Quarter made Steve shudder. “I’m sure. You’ll be more effective in Ohio. There are too many cities in that state. We need someone who can fly between them and keep tabs on things in all of them.”

The hologram couldn’t transmit the screen, but it certainly carried Tony’s sigh. “Ohio. Yeah. Okay, in that case” — he turned the tablet and tapped at it — “I can do fly-bys out of state, too. Make sure the new kids are holding up okay. Wanda. Sam. Oh, and make sure Vision’s not getting scrambled. Prejudice isn’t logical and all.”

“They’re fine, Stark. They can handle themselves.”

“Yeah, but the masses don’t exactly know them,” Tony said. “Wanda doesn’t even have her own action figure. You know how marketing companies feel about ‘girl superheroes’ and all.” He rolled his eyes.

“That’s a reflection on our misogynist culture, not her effectiveness.” Steve took a deep breath and decided it was time to cut the bullshit. “What are you trying to say, Stark? Dinner’s already on the table.”

Tony sighed again. “I’m saying Wanda’s a _kid_. And JAR— _Vision_ is...” He shook his head. “How are they supposed to stand on the steps of a state supreme court and address two sides who are going to be at each other’s throats.”

“Like the Avengers they are, Tony. You’ve got your assignment, and they’ve got theirs. They’ll be ready when the time comes. If you’re wasting energy being worried about them, are you sure you will be?”

Tony’s expression went cold. “ _I’ll_ be fine. You just make sure the newbies are. This was your idea. If they screw it up, you’re the one who’ll look bad.”

“ _My_ ego can handle it. But my team won’t let me down, because this isn’t about me. It’s about our fellow Americans who need our help. Be ready when I call, Stark.” Steve waited a polite second and a half before disconnecting Tony. Then he hurried to dinner. Missing a night Sam cooked was a damned tragedy.

 

**Friday, June 26, 2015**

“Steve!” Sam shouted, banging on the door to Steve’s bunkroom. “Decision’s made!  They’re doing the running of the interns now!”

_Holy shit. Finally!_

Steve hopped out of bed and scrambled for the closet. “Suit up, Falcon! Assemble the team.”

“On it, Cap!” Sam’s footsteps disappeared down the hall.

Steve could’ve thrown on any clothes and changed into his uniform on the quinjet, but he didn’t know if he’d end up broadcasting a statement from midair. He stripped out of his T-shirt and boxers — the suit was too tight for anything but boxer-briefs — and pulled an undershirt out of his closet. Which way would they decide? Steve’s heart was racing, and he took a deep breath as he steeled himself for a challenging day no matter which way the verdict went.

The bunkroom door flew open, bouncing against the wall. “Marriage equality is now legal,” Natasha said from the doorway. “Put on your rainbow undies, Cap. White’s too boring for today.”

Steve turned and caught Natasha’s eye, grinning wide. “Damn right. You ready for this?”

Her soft smile was the type she rarely showed to anyone. Sam, sometimes. Bruce, in his moods. Clint’s kids. “Been ready all my life. Just like you,” she said, arching a brow at him.

“Yeah,” Steve sighed, his shoulders dropping. “Who knew I’d live long enough for this, huh?”

Natasha walked in and tossed her phone on his bed. The screen was full of scrolling notifications, many of them with rainbow colors. She went right to him and cupped his jaw in her hands. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Her fingers felt cool on his flushed skin. “Nah. My chance for this has passed. You know I lost both of my loves going into that ice.”

Natasha rose up on her toes and kissed him, eyes fluttering closed for a heartbeat. “You’ll find him,” she said, stepping back. “And you’ll bring him home.”

Steve shook his head. “Who knows if it’ll really be _him,_ Nat?”

“Listen to what I said, Steve. _You’ll bring him home._ ” She smiled and looked him up and down. “Now put your clothes on. You don’t need to spark a gay revolution today. The Supreme Court did that for you — and they did it wearing pants. At least, I assume they were, under those robes.”

A wry smile tugged at Steve’s mouth. “You never know what people have got going on under the surface, babe.” He nudged her toward the door. “Now let me suit up so we can make sure this is a peaceful revolution.”

“I’ll get the engines started,” she said on her way out.

Steve called after her, “Great. Tell everyone Operation Love Wins is go.”

 

~~~

 

“Tactical update, Cap,” Natasha said through the headset. “The Governor of Texas issued a statement. It’s pretty nasty. Sending it to your phone now.”

Steve leaned back and got the phone out of its belt holster. He opened Natasha’s text, tapped the link, then scowled at the governor’s message. _The Supreme Court has abandoned its role as an impartial judicial arbiter and has become an unelected nine-member legislature. Five Justices on the Supreme Court have imposed on the entire country their personal views on an issue that the Constitution and the Court’s previous decisions reserve to the people of the States._

Ridiculous, homophobic, prejudicial _shit_ , right down to the typo. Seething, Steve opened a comm line. “Thanks, Nat. ETA?”

“We’re over Austin now. Getting into position. The courthouse has a nice front lawn. It’s not _too_ crowded yet.”

“Can you set down?”

“Negative. I can get down to about twenty feet. I assume,” she added flatly, “that you didn’t bother to put on a parachute?”

“Twenty feet is fine.”

Instead of responding over the comms, Natasha banked the quinjet and lowered the back ramp. Steve holstered his phone, made sure the velcro was fastened — the last thing he needed was a civilian getting hold of his phone — then went to the edge of the ramp. As she’d said, there were a handful of demonstrators — rainbow flags on one side, Texas flags on the other, including one Confederate flag that had Steve’s blood boiling. He ran down the ramp and jumped a little more abruptly than he’d intended, and his landing put four-inch divots in the shape of bootprints into the grass.

Some things hadn’t changed in the last seventy years. No one — not Nazis, not gay pride demonstrators, not crazy Texans — expected Captain America to just fall from the sky. He had about twenty seconds to straighten up and orient himself before both mobs started towards him. And that meant he had enough time to smile and wave and head right for those rainbow flags, making his position damned clear.

He could almost _feel_ the shock and disappointment coming from the haters.

First order of business was to make sure everyone who entered the courthouse was safe. After that, it was about making a show of support for the queer community and the rights of those who wanted to marry, no matter their choice of partner.

Steve had decided to go to Texas to make a statement about the nature of true patriotism, but he kept in touch with the other Avengers throughout the day. Tony had no trouble doing fly-bys in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, even Dayton and Akron for good measure. Thor had fun in New Orleans, and Steve had to keep reminding him to check in on Baton Rouge, where the protests in front of the capitol building actually were. Natasha was the perfect person to intimidate the anti-gay protesters in Arkansas while giving pointers to the new team members. They all did well, of course. Wanda had a steel core that no one wanted to fuck with, Rhodey had been taking lessons in cockiness from Tony, Sam was made of sunshine and snark, and Vision was completely immune to taunts. Maria and Pepper were true professionals, and _everyone_ was scared of Fury, but that was why he was the one in Mississippi. Steve had been secretly worried about Bruce keeping his cool, but it seemed Clint had kept him amused with a running commentary full of sass.

Through it all, Steve posed for pictures with any gay couple or ally who asked, signed autographs, and delivered the occasional scathing put-down to any of the haters who got up the guts to approach. Today of all days, the queer people were out in force and friendly as golden retriever puppies — the exact opposite of the haters. So when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye and spotted someone furtively approaching, someone anonymous in a battered ball cap and denim jacket, he braced himself for another attack of “You’re betraying America!”

“You going inside or just watching?”

Why was that voice familiar? And that accent...

There was no way Steve knew anyone in Texas, of all places, and _no one_ in Texas had a Brooklyn accent. When he looked closer, he saw five o’clock shadow over suntanned skin and bright blue eyes.

“Just keeping the peace...” Wait, he knew those eyes. He’d never in his long life forget them. His heart banged against his chest once, hard. Drawing breath to speak took effort. “Bucky?”

The smile that appeared was just a hint of what it once had been, but that cocky, self-confident light came into Bucky’s eyes, just like old times. “Yeah. Yeah, Steve,” he said, taking his right hand out of his jacket pocket and reaching for Steve.

Not one nerve in Steve’s body registered a threat at Bucky’s movement — in fact, he extended his hand to Bucky’s as if starved for his touch. Hearing his name on Bucky’s lips left him speechless for far longer than he wanted, but finally he was able to whisper, “Hey, Buck.”

“So...” Bucky glanced past Steve, then back at him. “This all really okay? Legal?”

“What, same-sex marriage? Yeah, it is.” Steve couldn’t keep from grinning in sheer joy. Even if Bucky didn’t approve, he’d never in Steve’s memory been hateful to anyone who loved differently. If this was really _his_ Bucky, he’d understand.

Bucky nodded, looking around again. “And you’re okay with it?”

An odd stab of fear shot through Steve before he could answer, but there was no reason to keep anything from Bucky now. Too much time had passed. “Does it surprise you to hear that I am?”

“Not really, no.” The crowd was close now, the roar of conversation a dull hum in Steve’s ears. He was focused entirely on the way Bucky took a deep breath and looked right up into his eyes. “So, I could ask you to kiss me, and you wouldn’t throw a punch?”

Steve lost his breath at the thought. How long had he been fantasizing about Bucky’s mouth on his? Sometimes he wondered if those decades in the ice had been one long dream of the two people he most loved in the world. He’d been sure he’d lost both of them forever, and then this. “Depends, Buck,” he said with a soft smile. “Would it really be you I’m kissing?”

Bucky nodded, mouth twitching up in a nervous smile. “If it’s legal, I can shoot anyone who tries to stop us, right?”

 _There_ was the proof he had his Bucky back. Instead of wasting time mentioning that kissing had been legal for decades in most states, Steve nodded and leaned in close. “Absolutely.”

More than seventy years ago, Bucky had been an expert at kissing, judging by all the happy dates Steve had watched from the sidelines. Now, while it was Steve who might have technically had more recent experience, thanks to Natasha, he felt the years fall away, leaving him feeling skinny, short, and too clumsy for his own body. Bucky’s mouth was hot and soft, and the arm around Steve’s body — when had Bucky done that? — was tight enough to keep Steve upright when his knees threatened to buckle. Around them, the world stood still, so completely silent that Steve could hear his own heart pounding, until there was nothing left but him and Bucky and the kiss Steve had wanted for so very long.

Then came the _click-click-click_ of cameras, like a hail of gunshots, and Bucky’s arm jerked Steve protectively close. Steve heard the rustle of denim and knew Bucky was going for a gun concealed somewhere under his jacket, and he broke the kiss enough to say, “It’s all right, Buck. There’s no threat.”

Bucky let out a frustrated huff, hot against Steve’s jaw. Then he stole another kiss, lips parted, tongue scorching against Steve’s mouth and teeth and tongue, and _this_ sort of kiss, he’d never had at all.

It was glorious. Steve could have spent the rest of the day kissing Bucky like this — the rest of his _life,_ to be honest. The scratchiness of Bucky’s stubble under Steve’s fingertips kept him grounded, focused on their connection. It meant he could push away the anxiety that wanted to surface over the shitstorm of publicity they were in for once the media got hold of those pictures.

The last thing he wanted was to pull away, but he couldn’t help looking for a place they might be at least a little less exposed. No such luck. They were completely surrounded. “Buck. We should —”

“Want to go inside?” Bucky interrupted.

“Yeah, okay.” There might be at least a modicum of privacy inside, even if Steve had directed his team to stay out where they could be visible. The grin on Bucky’s face was so delightful Steve couldn’t help kissing it.

Bucky laughed when the kiss broke. “What do we need? I have identity papers and a few thousand dollars. That’s enough, right?”

“What?” Everything stopped for a second as Steve processed Bucky’s words. “You want to... _Really?_ ” Steve had to grab hold of Bucky’s arm to keep his balance. “You’ll marry me?”

The crowd gasped, but all Steve heard was Bucky say, “That’s the point of me coming here to find you, right?” His smile turned sly. “You’ll have to help me mop up the rest of HYDRA, though. Think you can keep up?”

 _Bucky wanted to marry him._ And he’d tracked Steve to Austin to do so. Nothing else mattered. He’d have told HYDRA to go fuck itself if the idea of going hunting with Bucky wasn’t so appealing. “I’ll try not to leave you in my wake. Since you’ll be my husband, and all.” God just the words made his heart jump. Steve had thought he’d never in his life say _my husband._ Would wonders never cease?

Bucky laughed again, this time sharp and full of challenge. “If that’s how you’re gonna be...” He got his right hand up around Steve’s nape, dislodging his helmet. It dropped to the grass as Bucky pulled Steve down for another kiss, hot and demanding.

Before Steve could get lost in the wonders of Bucky’s mouth again, he broke the kiss and reached down to pick up his helmet. He fished out the earpiece and gave Bucky a reassuring smile. “Team? Gimme an update. If things are calm enough where you are, I need a favor.”

While the others waited, Thor spoke up first — his radio discipline was lax at best. Then the others sounded off in good order, ending with their most junior Avenger, Wanda, who asked, “What is this favor, Captain?”

“For you all to come meet me at the courthouse in Austin.” Steve met Bucky’s gaze and raised his eyebrows as he added, “We need witnesses, right?”

Bucky frowned. “How should I know?”

Steve stopped mid-chuckle and swore. Then he remembered he was still on comms. “Sorry, folks. I just realized we need rings, too.”

“Uh, _one_ ring,” Bucky said, glancing down at his left hand, which was still in his jacket pocket.

“I’ll take care of it,” Tony offered over comms. “Platinum? Diamonds?”

“Plain gold band, men’s size eleven,” Natasha said in a do-as-I-say-or-you-die-painfully sort of voice. Such a romantic.

“Wear it on your right. I want to give you a ring,” Steve whispered, his fingers seeking out Bucky’s. When Bucky nodded, shyly smiling back, Steve said into comms, “Two gold bands. We can worry about sizing them some other time.”

“Right. I’ll —” Tony began, but Natasha cut him off.

“Two _men’s_ gold bands, same size. Right, Cap?” she asked, and comms went dead silent.

“Ah, yeah. Was that not clear? Bucky wants to get married. Right now. We’ll wait for you if you hurry, though.”

 _“Bucky?”_ almost everyone asked, static crackling over the comms systems, just as thunder rolled through the suddenly dark skies. Even that couldn’t deter the crowd that was still filming and shouting for a smile or a wave.

Until, with a crash of lightning, Thor dropped onto the ground, crushing the soft grass and earth even worse than Steve had when he’d jumped out of the quinjet. Steve had half a heartbeat to recognize what was going on before Bucky shoved him back. Not one gun but two materialized in his hands, both aimed right at Thor — who apparently didn’t give a damn about guns.

 _“My friends!”_ the God of Thunder boomed, throwing his arms wide, Mjolnir negligently gripped in his right hand. He was grinning like a golden retriever being offered a cookie.

Steve slid his hand down Bucky’s arm towards his wrist, applying gently increasing pressure as he went. He leaned in close until his mouth was a hair’s breadth from Bucky’s ear and said, “Easy, love. Shooting your wedding guests is frowned upon, even in these parts.” Bucky didn’t fight Steve’s hands; he just lowered the guns and reached back to shove them into holsters hidden under his denim jacket.

There were intense whispers — “That’s the Winter Soldier!” “He killed all those people!” — but they were drowned out by Thor’s battle-cry of, “This is a day to celebrate!” He rushed forward, and before Steve could draw breath to shout a warning, he threw his arms around them both, roaring with joyous laughter.

Steve had been crushed by Thor’s hugs before, but this was something special. Maybe it was because he was smashed into Bucky as well, or maybe it was being made to let go of all the pent-up energy in his muscles. Or maybe it was just being able to share his joy with one of his dear friends. Whatever it was, Steve felt tears in his eyes as he murmured, “Thanks, buddy.”

Thor’s shoulder-claps were enough to make one super-soldier stagger; two was hardly much more of a challenge. “Let us see to the marriage, my friends. Then, we can all go to Asgard for a proper celebration. Your wedding feast will be legendary,” he promised.

Steve laughed tightly and glanced at Bucky, who looked even more dazed than he himself felt. He reached out and laced his fingers with Bucky’s as he said to Thor, “We have to wait for the rest of the guests to get here — and we need to go get the license. Alone.”

Speaking of the license... Steve let go of Bucky’s hand so he could reach under the jacket and disarm Bucky. In a show of absolute trust, Bucky let it happen without even a word of protest. Steve gave him a reassuring smile, then turned back to Thor.

“Hold these for us, will you?” he asked, offering Thor Bucky’s guns.

“Tiny weapons,” Thor said, as charmed as if Steve had handed him a kitten. To Bucky, he added, “I will keep them safe for you.”

A little skeptically, Bucky nodded and said, “Thanks.”

That settled, Steve asked Thor, “Why don’t you show the crowd some of your Asgardian charm, and I’ll call you when we’re ready?

“Of course,” Thor said, giving Steve another slap on the arm that jarred his bones right down to his ankles.

As soon as Thor turned away, Steve took hold of Bucky’s arm — he was momentarily surprised at the feel of hard metal instead of muscle under his sleeve — and headed for the courthouse. A few people were following them at a distance, smartphones focused on them, but no one got close. Even Thor’s friendliness couldn’t immediately fix the Winter Soldier’s reputation. They only stopped after Steve and Bucky entered the courthouse.

With the show outside, there was barely a line at the security checkpoint — and everyone turned to gape at them. A little nervously, Steve raised his voice and said, “We’re here for a marriage license.” Then he caught Bucky smiling at him and found the nerve to say, “I’ve been in love with this man for eighty years. It’s about time we made this official.”

**Author's Note:**

> By the way, the disgusting statement from Governor Abbot of Texas is actually real. You can read the full text here:
> 
> http://gov.texas.gov/news/press-release/21131
> 
> And if you want to tell him how awful his statement is (though please be professional and remember that all information on the form is subject to public disclosure) you can contact the governor's office here:
> 
> https://gov.texas.gov/contact/


End file.
